College Kid Develops 3D Printed Wind-Powered USB Charger

The sophomore at Binghamton University said his simple charging solution was inspired by a Makerbot challenge.

“I’ve been wanting to do a project like this for a while now, and I started trying out some things with it, but then I got distracted with work and everything and put it on hold,” Dorsa told 3D Print. “Then I saw Makerbot’s Catch The Wind challenge the other day and decided it was time to go back and actually make something of this.”

He also said it does not quick work yet to safely charge a phone, but he is working on it. He is also working on improvements to the general design.

“My knowledge of electronics is amateur at best. If you leave this connected to a phone or something for too long it might melt, or explode, or turn into a Decepticon,” he said. “I really don’t know, so use it at your own risk. I’ve had a portable charger hooked up to it for a while now though, and so far it’s been fine. The voltage this produces is pretty low, so I don’t think it’s dangerous, but just in case, I want to avoid liability.”

You can download Dorsa’s design at Thingverse and 3DPrint.com has even opened up a forum where you can help the young maker perfect his green design.

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